What is the proper gunsmith payment etiquette for this situation?

[Gary in Pennsylvania]

I'm taking a road trip down to Pinnacle Performance Guns tomorrow morning www.pinnacle-guns.com/ to drop off my SP-101 for some mods and a thorough going over.

I know that the final bill is going to be on the high side of $200.

Though Mark Hartshorne's shop is on the small side......He and his work is respected. I'm not asking him to perform miracles to my little SP....just change some things.

What's appropriate for this? I want to extend 'good will' and encourage extra love-and-care....So I was gonna leave a $200 deposit against the work?

Is that normal? Or discouraged? Or a good plan?

I dunno - I've never had 'smith work done before.

Thanks!

[DaveM55]

Almost every gunsmith has thier own rates, just ask him.

Last time he put nite sights on one of my guns I gave him $60.00 and I supplied the sites. He wouldn't have charged me that much but I gave it to him anyway. He has done little things for free which take him 10 minutes. He once installed and fitted a short trigger on one of SIGs for free. I give him $60 almost every time I see him, unless the work is major, then he gets more.

[Xringshooter]

Speaking for myself the deposit isn't necessary but it is nice in that it tells me that you are serious about having your gun worked on. I normally don't ask for a deposit unless it is high dollar parts that I have to order (mainly because I have the gun and you're not getting it back until you pay LOL). On work like you described (looking everything over, smoothing up trigger pull, etc) which may not require parts (or minimal parts) ask him the hourly rate if it isn't posted. He should be able to give you an estimate on how long it will take and the cost. Keep in mind though that is just an estimate, it could be higher or lower.

I'll do the same thing, if it's a 10 minute job, something simple, I'll do it for nothing (helps bring people back for other work). I also try to be upfront with people, if I don't think I can do the job, I'll refer you to someone that can.

Building a relationship with a gunsmith is just like building one with a good mechanic. You can trust them to do it right the first time for a fair price and they can trust you to pay him what is due when it is due.

[Gary in Pennsylvania]

Here is the preliminary order:

Conversion of 3" SP101 Full Underlug to Half Underlug - About $90
Complete Action Job - $80.00
Bob & Polish Hammer - $30.00
Narrow, Rnd, & Polish Trigger - $30.00
Overtravel Stud - $30.00
Chamfer & Polish Cylinders, $6 per hole - $30.00
Total job - Approx $290.00


With these....all but the first were quotes from his pricing sheet on his website.
Regarding the 1st line (Full Underlug to Half Underlug), he quoted me at about $75-$80....but I'm also gonna ask that he buff/remove the ugly Ruger warning billboard off of the side of the barrel.

Based on that statement of work, $290 is the ballpark. I was gonna leave him with $200.

[4XLT]

i personally have never dealt with a smith, am looking for one in my area.
but i think all of those prices are reasonable , more so than what i was thinking they would be.

[normanvin]

The few times that i have used a smith. i left the gun. paid for it when the work was done. I have never had major dollar work done on any of my stuff.

[Tomcat088]

It will all depend on the smith. My experience with gunsmiths has been what Xringshooter said. Most of them don't ask for a deposit, because you won't get your pistol/rifle/shotgun back until you pay them for their services. If I was having alot of high end stuff ordered, I would leave a deposit just so he didn't have to pay for all of it out of his pocket. Most of them are really nice guys just trying to make honest money and who just enjoy putting fine craftsmanship into your firearm. BE SURE to tell him how pleased and excited you are with the work after it is done because it really makes them smile that someone else can appreciate their workmanship. Just ask him if he needs a deposit, if you have the money and it's not any sweat and you trust the guy, leave him a deposit it definately can't hurt and might make his day. Lol, I don't know about other guys, but I usually take my gunsmith a 12 pack of his favorite beer too, but we're buddies.

[elston32]

Theads like this are what I love about PAFOA.

Great conversation; great information.

Thanks to all that contributed their input!!

Stay well.


---elston

[Gary in Pennsylvania]

Originally Posted by elston32

Theads like this are what I love about PAFOA.

Great conversation; great information.

Thanks to all that contributed their input!!
---elston

Update.....

I met with Mark Hartshorne yesterday. I dropped my SP-101 into his careful custody.

What a great guy! He is customer oriented, explains himself thoroughly and, in my opinion, very reasonably priced.

I offered him a generous deposit and he politely declined. No deposit necessary....especially since it was 99.9% labor.

I'll post the pics when the work is done.